


A Tale of Two Minds

by AmbyGram



Series: A Tale of Two Minds [1]
Category: Hannibal (TV)
Genre: Emotional Manipulation, Emotional Trauma, Emotional/Psychological Abuse, F/M, Hannigram - Freeform, M/M, Psychological Horror, Violence
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-08-10
Updated: 2015-08-13
Packaged: 2018-04-14 01:00:46
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 4
Words: 4,744
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4544097
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AmbyGram/pseuds/AmbyGram
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Will is experiencing black outs.<br/>Working on an important and demanding case he cannot afford to lose time.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Beginnings

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you like this fic, its my very first one!  
> I will be updating daily. Im really excited about it.  
> Let me know what you think!  
> Hope youre all great!  
> AmbyGram

Will sat with his head in his hands. He had a headache again, they were becoming a regular occurrence. Hannibal sat opposite him in silence, studying Will carefully.

"Are you alright Will?" Hannibal asked.

"Yes, I'm fine" he replied his breath shallow.

Will stood up, as he did the room swam in front of his eyes before going completely black he staggered a few paces before falling to the floor, his legs unable to hold him up any longer.

He woke up dripping with sweat in his own bed, from a horrible dream. How had he got here Will thought. He had been in Hannibal's house.  
Forcing himself out of bed, he went to the the bathroom and doused his face with cool water and dried it on a towel.  
He looked at himself in the mirror for a few seconds, he barely recognized his own reflection. It was him, only it wasn't him. At least not how he remembered himself to look, though his appearance had not changed at all.

He heard a knock at the door, he answered it to find Jack Crawford on his doorstep.  
Will beckoned him in and closed the door behind them.

"Hello Jack" Will smiled "what can I do for you?"

Jack sat himself down on Wills sofa and pulled out a file from his bag and started to rifle through it.  
Will stood in silence watching Jack.

"Here" Jack said finally handing Will a piece of paper and some photos from the file.

Will took them, and paced around the room as he looked over them.

He turned to face Jack.

"What do you want to know?" he asked swallowing hard.

Jack looked up at him and shifted his weight in the seat.

"I want to know why he is doing it" Jack said.

"He?" Will raised his eyebrow at Jack. "Your killer is a woman"

This clearly took Jack by surprise. Will handed the papers back to Jack who stowed them away back into the file.

"Why is she doing it?" asked Jack.

Will began to pace again as he told Jack why she was killing.

"She's doing it because they have something that she doesn't, something that she really wants but knows she can never have. She is jealous of them, she wants to humiliate them as much as she can" Will said telling Jack everything he could.

"Jealous of what?" Jack asked curiously.

"Something, something to do with their personality. They all had in her eyes a personality trait that she longs to have herself" Will said slowly, carefully considering his every word before he said it.

"Thank you Will" said Jack he put the file back into his bag and got to his feet.

"You're welcome" replied Will showing Jack to the door.

Jack left Will still deep in thought about the murders he had presented the profiler with. His headache had returned now, worse than ever.

Will went back into his bedroom and lay down on his bed, rubbing his eyes which now had black spots floating in front of them. He shut them and willed for sleep to take him. It did.

_The forest was dark, only lit by the pale strips of moonlight that found their way through the canopy of the trees._

_Something rustled in the branches of the trees above his head. He looked up to see an owl ruffling its feathers._

_He saw something move out of the corner of his eye. He took a few small steps forward to try and catch a glimpse of thing whose movement had caught his eye._

Will awoke with a start, to find his room dark. He looked at his alarm clock two am it said. His mouth dry he switched on his bedside lamp, then went to make himself a cup of tea, before going back to bed.

*

Will was sat in his usual chair opposite Hannibal. He was slumped back in his chair were as Hannibal was sat slightly forwards his elbows rested on his knees and his fingers steepled.

They sat in silence as Hannibal considered Will for a moment.

"Tell me Will" Hannibal broke the silence. "have you had any more nightmares?"

Will shifted in his seat and rubbed between his eyes with his thumb and index finger.

"Yes" he replied his jaw slightly clenched. He hated talking about his nightmares.

"Tell me about it Will" Hannibal said.

Avoiding eye contact with Hannibal he started to tell him about the nightmare.

"I was in a forest, there was a woman" Will started "her face was bloodied and bruised, then I woke up"

Hannibal looked at Will slumped in his chair.

"And that is all?" Hannibal asked.

On this rare occasion Will made eye contact with the man sat opposite him.

"Yes, that is all" Will replied slightly irritated.

They sat in silence for a while, both of their minds working. Hannibal's mid was set firmly on Will; it pretty much always was. Wills mind was focused on the case Jack had presented him with the day before.

_What had been the trait the killer was jealous of?_

"Will" Hannibal said "Will, are you with me?"

Will jerked back to reality; Hannibal was knelt down in front of him with his slender hands on Wills shoulder shaking him very lightly.

Will blinked his eyes, the room coming into focus again. He rubbed his face over with his hand.

"Yes" he said, looking away from Hannibal.

"Good" Hannibal said moving away from him.

Ring ring. Wills phone rang in his pocket; he fished it out to see Jack Crawford's name and number on the screen.

"Yes" Will said.

"Will I need you to come to the Lark Forest, there's been another murder." Jack told him urgently. "We think it's the same person"

*

Will arrived on the scene to find it cordoned off, with the FBI and the police milling around.

He ducked under the tape and set off to look for Jack.

"Jack" Will called as he caught sight of him.

"Ah Will!" he smiled. "I need you to tell me what you see. I can have the placed cleared while you work if you need that"

"Please" said Will.

Jack cleared the clearing in the forest so that it was just Will and the body there.

Will closed his eyes.

_I lure my victim to the forest. She willingly comes with me. We talk about our lives. I make her feel at ease. Nothing I do makes her suspicious of me._

_This is my design._

_We have known each other a long time. She has what I don't. If I cannot have it nor can she._

_Darkness falls. We start back to our cars. That's when I attack. I cover her mouth in an attempt to muffle her screams as I thrust a knife into her heart, killing her quickly._

_This is my design._

Will's eyes snapped open, and he was back to himself.

"Jack" he called over his shoulder and waited for him to come over.

Within a few moments Jack was by Wills side again; his arms crossed. 

"What did you see?" he probed Will.

Will stood in silence for a few moments thinking carefully about how to tell Jack what he knew.

"She lures them here." Will began. "they come willingly, she befriends them"

Jack continued to look at Will, waiting for him to elaborate on this statement, but Will just stood there.

"Will?" Jack said

"She's er she's killing them because they are normal" Will told him, staring straight in front of him.

"Normal?" Jack asked pushing Will for more of his insight.

Will turned his head to look at Jack, though he was careful to avoid direct eye contact.

"She perceives herself to be abnormal in some way" Will said his voice firm. "the abnormality she sees in herself will not be visible" 

Jack considered Wills words before saying "Then what is this abnormality she sees in herself?"

Will pushed his glasses up on his nose.

"I don't know Jack" he said "it's something that most people would think doesn't matter. But it matters a great deal to our killer"


	2. Quickly and Quietly

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Will's nightmares become worse.  
> Jack continues to push the young profiler.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> THIS CHAPTER IS INCOMPLETE  
> Thank you to everyone who has read the first chapter and left Kudos and comments! I'm glad you enjoyed it!  
> I'm going to start updating this a chapter at a time hopefully every week!

The steam billowed out of the kettle. Pushing himself off of the couch Will continued with making his tea, the steam from the kettle made his face hot and sweaty. Returning to his seat he began to think about the body of the woman in the forest which had now been identified as Maisie Wilkins.

She had worked as a waitress and had been a popular member of her hometown, everyone seemed to know who she was and none had anything bad to say about her.

Will closed his eyes and took himself back to the clearing he had been in earlier that day.

_We talk about work, and everyday topics._

_I pretend to laugh at her stupid jokes._

_This is my design_

_I take her by surprise._

_I stab her quickly and quietly as she turned to head back to her car._

_This is my design._

_I watch as she bleeds out onto the floor, I’m smiling. I laugh as I watch her writhing on the floor._

_This is my design._

Wills eyes fluttered open as he came back to reality. He was shivering and could feel the beginnings of a headache. He finished his tea and went for a lay down.

He slept uneasily, waking often in a cold sweat.

*

Hannibal placed a plate in front of Will, the food was beautifully presented as always. Hannibal poured himself and Will some wine before sitting himself down to Wills right at the head of the grand table.

Everything in Hannibal’s house was grand and special, well looked after too Will had noticed. Hannibal’s house was like stepping back in time in some rooms, but in other it was as modern and contempory as could be.

The tucked into the dish in silence; Will had already forgotten the name which Hannibal had given the dish. The silence was only broken by the scraping of their knives on their plates.

“Tell me Will, what do you think of this dish?” Hannibal asked as Will set his knife and fork down on his now empty plate.

“Mmm, it’s very good” he replied as he swallowed down his last mouthful.

Hannibal stood and began to clear away their empty plates and beckoned Will to join him in the kitchen.

“I hear Jack Crawford has you working on another case” Hannibal said as he placed the dirty plates into the sink.

“Yes, that’s right” replied Will leaning slightly on the work top.

“A little bird told me the killer is a woman” Hannibal mused and glanced over at Will.

Will considered Hannibal for a moment before replying.

“Yes, a woman”

This seemed to interest Hannibal for he paused from what he was doing to continue the conversation.

“How does she choose them?” he asked Will

“She chooses people who she perceives to be normal, so far all her victims have been female, but that doesn’t mean to say her next won’t be male”

Hannibal resumed his task and did not reply to Will’s last statement.

They stood silently for a good ten minutes before Hannibal beckoned Will through to the room they used for their conversations.

Will took his usual seat and Hannibal took his.

“So tell me Will” Hannibal said “do you know who killed that woman in the forest”

“No” Will admitted

“Does Jack think you are close?”

“I don’t know what Jack thinks other than he wants this case solved fast as he always does” Will told Hannibal who was sitting forward in his seat now.

Their conversation was interrupted by a hard knock on the door. Hannibal rose from his seat and walked confidently across the room to answer it.

He opened the door to Jack Crawford, the plump man nodded his head to Hannibal in greeting.

“Come in Jack, we were just talking about you” Hannibal invited him in.

Jack stepped across the threshold and walked around the room taking it in as he always did.

“What can I do for you Jack?” Hannibal asked with a polite smile.

Jack paused in his wander around the room and turned to face Hannibal, who Jack was not surprised to see, was dressed immaculately as usual.

 “I was here about the man who is currently in your company” Jack said gesturing at Will who was still sat in his usual place.

“I was just leaving” Will told the pair, deciding it was better to leave them to their conversations. He had no desire to listen to them discussing him.  

He stood up and made his way purposefully towards the door bidding the two men goodbye.

*

_The forest was dark; tonight the moonlight barely broke through the canopy._

_A dark figure was moving about ten feet in front of him but it was too dark to properly make out its form._

_Will slowly moved forward edging his way closer to the silhouette in the trees ahead._

_Careful not to make any noise, he got closer to the beast._

_It was a large animal, black. A thick black substance seemed to be dripping from its body._

_And horns. It was a stag Will decided._

_He moved closer still._

_The stag seemed to sense him there and let out a low moan and stamped its hoof on the leaf covered floor, before it slinked away into a thicker part of the forest._

_Will tried to follow, he curiosity getting the better of him. What was the substance dripping from the stags antlers and coat?_

_He head a yelp from somewhere behind him. It sounded like a dog._

_Forgetting the stag he turned to find the source of the yelping._

_He pushed his way through the branches. The trees grew close together here._

_Soon he found the source of the yelping. It was a dog, it was laying on the floor its breathing shallow and fur covered in blood._

_He glimpsed someone standing a little way away but he ignored this figure and began to tend to the dog._

_BANG_

_A bullet flew towards Will._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoyed this chapter! I'm really enjoying writing this :)  
> And thank you if you leave a comment or kudos!  
> I will reply to every comment left :)


	3. Dark is the Day

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> There is another murder.  
> Will is finding it harder to keep himself going.  
> Jack suspects something is wrong with Will.  
> Hannibal helps Will keep himself.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was a fun chapter to write.  
> I'm really into this fic so I will probably be updating really regularly.  
> I hope to get this finished before I go back to college because I'll have less time to write when I'm back there as its an intense course.

The crime scene was bustling with investigators. People surrounded the corpse that still lay on the ground.

Beverly Kats walked over to Jack and Will who were standing on the other side of the tape that cordoned off the scene.

“Jack” the black haired woman addressed him.

“Beverly” Jack replied a small smile on his lips.

She ducked under the tape and continued to talk to Jack, completely ignoring Will. Most people completely ignored him so it didn’t bother him. In fact he liked being ignored.

“The estimated time of death is between 10pm and 12am last night from a single stab wound to the back” Beverly informed Jack “he was K..”

“He?” Jack asked interrupting Beverly Katz.

“Yeah, he, the victim is male” Beverly smiled.

Jack turned to Will holding his hand up to Beverly to silence her, she looked slightly annoyed by this but accepted it and remained silent.

“The victim is a man; her previous victims have all been female. Is it the same killer?”

“Yes” said Will in a sure tone nodding his head slightly.

This took Jack by surprise; he had assumed that all the killers’ victims would be female.

“How do you know it’s the same killer?” Jack asked Will still holding his hand up to Beverly.

“The thing that makes her feel abnormal isn’t only a trait found in females. Her victims can be male too, though it is more likely her next will again be female it doesn’t mean she won’t kill men” Will told Jack all he knew about why he was sure it was the same killer.

Jack stroked his chin carefully mulling over this new information.  He ducked under the tape to take a look at the corpse for himself leaving Will with Beverly.

“So Jacks got you in on another case then?” Beverly smiled at Will

Will nodded his head in reply wishing she would leave him be. He hated small talk.

“Jack thinks highly of you” Beverly continued looking at Will trying to read his face.

“Does he?” Will replied with a nervous smile. He hated the attention being on him.

“Yes” said Beverly and with one last smile at Will she ducked back under the tape and continued with her work.

Will stood for a while longer watching everyone go about the business most paid no attention to him and Jack was absorbed in his work. He wasn’t needed here now Will thought so he made his way back to his car.

*

_The stag slunk between the gravestones, dripping with the same thick black substance._

_Will crouched behind a particularly old stone that read_

_‘David Spring- loving husband and father will be greatly missed’_

_The stag let out a screeching moan that hurt Wills ears._

_He followed the stag through the stones, following the trail of black sludge that it left behind._

_The moon was pale in the in the sky casting an eerie light on the stones below._

_Something thick and wet soaked Wills shoes where he stood. He looked down to the same black substance that dripped from the stag had started to soak into his shoes. It seemed to climb up his legs drying as it went._

_The stag had disappeared._

Will awoke to find himself not in his bed but on wet grass. He looked around, he was in a graveyard.

It was early, the moon still moonlight slowly giving way to the early sunlight of dawn.  Standing up Will brushed himself down as much as he could; his clothes were caked in the wet mud of the ground and clothes just wet where it hadn’t been in contact with the ground.

It had obviously rained as he had been laying there the ground had already been damp the day before but now it was saturated.

He walked through the graveyard trying to get his bearings trying not to think about how he had ended up there in the first place.

He walked and walked not in any particular direction he eventually found himself at Hannibal’s door, this was not his intended destination but it was where he had ended up nonetheless.

He stood outside debating on whether he should knock. He did.

“Will” Hannibal said as he looked Will up and down “come in” Hannibal put his hand on Wills back and led him into the house, Will was barley aware of his surroundings.

“Sit” Hannibal told Will “let’s get you sorted”

Will sat and closed his eyes focusing on his breathing, trying to keep it steady.

“What happened to you Will” Hannibal asked his face full of concern.

“Stag, graveyard, nightmare. I don’t know how I got there” Will muttered.

“I shall run you a bath Will, I shall come for you when it’s ready” Hannibal said softly and left the room.

Will sat completely still, still focusing on his breathing but his mind was starting to wander.

Images of the stag and the graveyard swam in his mind; he tried to make sense of it.

“Will” Hannibal whispered to Will “the bath is ready” he said louder this time.

Will followed Hannibal through the house and to the bathroom. The room was hot with steam rising in wisps from the water.

Hannibal was about to leave Will to bath himself when Will fell to the ground.

“Will” Hannibal said pulling Will up from the floor. “Here let me help you”

Will stood there listlessly as Hannibal undressed him and helped him into the most lovely warm bath.

He let Hannibal scrub the mud from his tired body and wash it from his hair, as he washed Wills hair he softly massaged his head relaxing him completely. Will breathed in the scent of the soap Hannibal used to wash his body.

When Will was clean Hannibal helped him from the bath and wrapped him in a soft white towel. Hannibal left Will to dry himself so he could fetch him some clean clothes.

He came back with a plain white shirt and simple black trousers and helped Will into them. They were a bit on the big side but that was okay.

“Will you will stay here tonight” Hannibal told him matter-of-factly.

Will was too tired to object, he just wanted to sleep. Hannibal led him from the bathroom along the hall and into a spare bedroom, the bed already made.

Will flopped down on top of the sheets and closed his eyes. Hannibal brushed Wills hair out of his face and whispered _goodnight_ before quietly leaving Will to sleep.

*

Will sat in Jacks office waiting for him to arrive. He had been summoned here to talk.

Will looked around the room at the wall where Jack set out all the murders with pins like a mind-map. Will could see he was making good progress but he seemed to be missing the crucial piece of evidence that would lead them to their killer.

On the board Jack had pinned the photos of possible suspects but Will knew that none of them were the killer they sought.

He heard the door to Jacks office open behind him, he turned to see Jack making his way to him desk looking serious.

Will waited for Jack to talk.

“Will” he said slowly “I’ve been talking to Dr. Lecter”

This information made Will clam up. _What had Hannibal told Jack?_   He shifted his weight nervously in his seat waiting for Jack to hit at what Hannibal had said.

“He thinks I am putting too much on you” Jack said “he says that he is worried for your health and that maybe I should lay the pressure off of you for a while”

Will still sat in silence and waited for Jack to tell him everything before he made his opinion known.

“You see the thing is Will” Jack said leaning forward over his desk “we need you; we need your particular way of thinking to crack this case. I cannot afford to lay off the pressure at present.”

Will kept his expression as blank as he could, not wanted to give Jack a glimpse of his thoughts on this conversation too soon.

“Will, I need to know you can cope out there” Jack finished.

“I can cope” Will said but offered Jack no more insight than them three words, but those words seemed to be enough to satisfy Jack for which Will was thankful.

“You may leave” Jack told Will gesturing towards the door.

Will got up from his chair slowly nodded his head at Jack and made his way out not wanting to be sat in Jacks company a moment longer. His head was starting to ache again, he just wanted to get home and sort out his dogs.

*

Will arrived home to his dogs who greeted him as enthusiastically jumping up and licking at him. Will prepared food for the dogs and set the bowls down in front of them. The dogs were quick to eat it making contented growls as they ate.

Will sat down and watched his dogs eat, he felt safe with his dogs, he loved them dearly. Winston finished his food first and turned his attention to Will resting his head on Wills lap.

“Hello Winston” he said rubbing the dogs’ face the way he knew Winston loved.

He waited for all the dogs to finish their food before he cleared the bowls away. He fussed them some more before he retired to his bedroom. He lay in his bed and thought about his conversation with Jack.  Could he cope in the field? He thought about the night he had spent at Hannibal’s. Just how much more of that night had Hannibal shared with Jack?

Had he told Jack that he’d turned up at his house at dawn soaking wet and covered in mud? That he had passed out and had to be bathed by Hannibal. Will felt humiliated by the thought of Jack knowing about that.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you liked this chapter.  
> The story is staring to actually go somewhere haha!  
> Thank you for any comments or kudos you leave!  
> Always appreciated.


	4. A Trace of the Killer

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Will

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is not complete.  
> Im going to be really busy from now for a while so if I update a whole chapter at a time there will be long gaps between updates. So for this chapter Im uploading it in installments.  
> Let me know if you would prefer a whole chapter or a longer wait and I will do it that way.  
> I hope you enjoy this really short update.

Will examined the body which lay on the frosted ground before him. The knife used to kill the victim still wedged in her back. The killer had left evidence this time.

The body was rigid and cold, the dark blood crusted around the single fatal wound. He knelt down on the ground so he could really look at the body. The method of killing was identical to the previous three bodies.

“What do you see?” Will heard Jack’s voice ask him from somewhere behind.

“Our killer was distracted” Will said still closely examining the corpse. “She left evidence this time, she wouldn’t do this willingly. So she must have been distracted” he concluded.

Will stood up and left forensics to continue gathering evidence and the coroner to prepare the body to be taken back to have a post mortem conducted on it.

Jack and Will walked together back to Jacks car discussing the particulars of this latest murder.

“She left the murder weapon” Jack said looking at Will. “We might be able to get prints off of it”

Will walked by Jacks side his head hung, he ran his hand over his mouth deep in thought.

“She won’t be known to the police” Will replied “I doubt you will have her prints on file”

“Doesn’t mean we can get her” Jack pointed out.

“Our enquiries haven’t turned up and possible suspect Jack” Will said “we are searching in the dark, we have nothing conclusive”

Jack stopped walking and Will stopped just ahead. Jack had a smile on his face.

“Maybe that knife will give us that piece of conclusive evidence we so need” he had a sparkle in his eye, clearly hopeful that the evidence turned up today would be enough to catch their elusive killer. Will wasn’t so sure but he said nothing further.

*

They all gathered round the body from the forest that now lay on the table ready to be examined.

Beverly was pouring over the body making notes of every scratch and bruise.

The knife had turned up prints but they didn’t match any on their database which was frustrating set

back for the team. Though Will wasn’t surprized by this finding, or lack of.

“We’ll continue with our door to door inquires. That still might turn something up” Jack said.

Will turned away from the table, he could feel Jacks eyes follow him as he walked across the room and out of the door, he let it slam shut behind him.

*

He arrived at Dr Lecter’s house as he was showing one of his patients out. Will stood there in silence as they exchanged some last words after their session just gone.

“Hello Will” Hannibal smiled holding out his arm to tell Will to come in.

Will didn’t sit down as he usually did but Hannibal still took his usual seat and sat with his legs crossed. He waited for Will to speak.

“Our killer left the murder weapon on the scene” Will began “she must have been disturbed by something, or someone” he continued as he slowly walked around the large room.

“That means there could be a witness” Will said turning to look at Hannibal.

A strange expression crossed the psychiatrist face, or at least Will thought one did, it was gone so quickly he wasn’t sure if it had been there in the first place.

“If there is indeed a witness” Hannibal said carefully “you must find them and hear what they have to say.”

Will huffed and ran his hand through his hair, before resuming his circle around the room. Hannibal watched him closely. Will could feel his eyes following him around the room, like they were not just watching him, but dissecting him; which was unnerving

“Had you not better spend your time finding the killer and not circling my room Will?” said Hannibal “and when you have caught the killer we shall have a dinner party”

 

*

_Anna ran through alleyway after alleyway doing all she could to lose her pursuer. She was soon out of breathe and gasping in the nights cold air trying to re-oxygenate herself as quick as she could._

_She felt breath on her neck. He had caught her. A hand roughly pulled at her neck breaking it and killing her. He took her liver as a trophy._


End file.
